Data / Rankings / Elementary school teacher mean annual wage / US states

US states by elementary school teacher mean annual wage

New York had the highest elementary school teacher mean annual wage of 51 states in 2019, at $82,830. Mississippi had the lowest, at $44,060. The median was $57,980 and the figure for the United States was $63,930. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest82,830New York
Lowest44,060Mississippi
Median57,98051 states
United States63,930History

Map of states, 2019

Alabama: 50,270 USDAlaska: 75,860 USDArizona: 45,600 USDArkansas: 48,800 USDCalifornia: 82,560 USDColorado: 54,670 USDConnecticut: 78,070 USDDelaware: 63,970 USDDistrict of Columbia: 79,390 USDFlorida: 55,210 USDGeorgia: 58,190 USDHawaii: 63,360 USDIdaho: 48,880 USDIllinois: 63,280 USDIndiana: 52,570 USDIowa: 53,950 USDKansas: 50,650 USDKentucky: 52,660 USDLouisiana: 48,630 USDMaine: 52,860 USDMaryland: 75,380 USDMassachusetts: 82,450 USDMichigan: 69,050 USDMinnesota: 63,250 USDMississippi: 44,060 USDMissouri: 50,920 USDMontana: 52,160 USDNebraska: 60,390 USDNevada: 56,980 USDNew Hampshire: 59,930 USDNew Jersey: 71,880 USDNew Mexico: 57,330 USDNew York: 82,830 USDNorth Carolina: 48,560 USDNorth Dakota: 55,630 USDOhio: 64,090 USDOklahoma: 45,970 USDOregon: 69,980 USDPennsylvania: 69,630 USDRhode Island: 72,310 USDSouth Carolina: 53,450 USDSouth Dakota: 44,110 USDTennessee: 53,540 USDTexas: 56,280 USDUtah: 60,660 USDVermont: 63,480 USDVirginia: 69,690 USDWashington: 69,390 USDWest Virginia: 45,390 USDWisconsin: 57,980 USDWyoming: 58,940 USD
  • Under 49K
  • 49K to 54K
  • 54K to 58K
  • 58K to 63K
  • 63K to 71K
  • 71K and over
USD, 2019. Source: BLS, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021). Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2019

New York: 82,830 USDNew York82,830California: 82,560 USDCalifornia82,560Massachusetts: 82,450 USDMassachusetts82,450District of Columbia: 79,390 USDDistrict of Columbia79,390Connecticut: 78,070 USDConnecticut78,070Alaska: 75,860 USDAlaska75,860Maryland: 75,380 USDMaryland75,380Rhode Island: 72,310 USDRhode Island72,310New Jersey: 71,880 USDNew Jersey71,880Oregon: 69,980 USDOregon69,980Virginia: 69,690 USDVirginia69,690Pennsylvania: 69,630 USDPennsylvania69,630Washington: 69,390 USDWashington69,390Michigan: 69,050 USDMichigan69,050Ohio: 64,090 USDOhio64,090Delaware: 63,970 USDDelaware63,970Vermont: 63,480 USDVermont63,480Hawaii: 63,360 USDHawaii63,360Illinois: 63,280 USDIllinois63,280Minnesota: 63,250 USDMinnesota63,250Utah: 60,660 USDUtah60,660Nebraska: 60,390 USDNebraska60,390New Hampshire: 59,930 USDNew Hampshire59,930Wyoming: 58,940 USDWyoming58,940Georgia: 58,190 USDGeorgia58,190Wisconsin: 57,980 USDWisconsin57,980New Mexico: 57,330 USDNew Mexico57,330Nevada: 56,980 USDNevada56,980Texas: 56,280 USDTexas56,280North Dakota: 55,630 USDNorth Dakota55,630Florida: 55,210 USDFlorida55,210Colorado: 54,670 USDColorado54,670Iowa: 53,950 USDIowa53,950Tennessee: 53,540 USDTennessee53,540South Carolina: 53,450 USDSouth Carolina53,450Maine: 52,860 USDMaine52,860Kentucky: 52,660 USDKentucky52,660Indiana: 52,570 USDIndiana52,570Montana: 52,160 USDMontana52,160Missouri: 50,920 USDMissouri50,920Kansas: 50,650 USDKansas50,650Alabama: 50,270 USDAlabama50,270Idaho: 48,880 USDIdaho48,880Arkansas: 48,800 USDArkansas48,800Louisiana: 48,630 USDLouisiana48,630North Carolina: 48,560 USDNorth Carolina48,560Oklahoma: 45,970 USDOklahoma45,970Arizona: 45,600 USDArizona45,600West Virginia: 45,390 USDWest Virginia45,390South Dakota: 44,110 USDSouth Dakota44,110Mississippi: 44,060 USDMississippi44,060New York: 82,830 USDNew York82,830California: 82,560 USDCalifornia82,560Massachusetts: 82,450 USDMassachusetts82,450District of Columbia: 79,390 USDDistrict of Columbia79,390Connecticut: 78,070 USDConnecticut78,070Alaska: 75,860 USDAlaska75,860Maryland: 75,380 USDMaryland75,380Rhode Island: 72,310 USDRhode Island72,310New Jersey: 71,880 USDNew Jersey71,880Oregon: 69,980 USDOregon69,980Virginia: 69,690 USDVirginia69,690Pennsylvania: 69,630 USDPennsylvania69,630Washington: 69,390 USDWashington69,390Michigan: 69,050 USDMichigan69,050Ohio: 64,090 USDOhio64,090Delaware: 63,970 USDDelaware63,970Vermont: 63,480 USDVermont63,480Hawaii: 63,360 USDHawaii63,360Illinois: 63,280 USDIllinois63,280Minnesota: 63,250 USDMinnesota63,250Utah: 60,660 USDUtah60,660Nebraska: 60,390 USDNebraska60,390New Hampshire: 59,930 USDNew Hampshire59,930Wyoming: 58,940 USDWyoming58,940Georgia: 58,190 USDGeorgia58,190Wisconsin: 57,980 USDWisconsin57,980New Mexico: 57,330 USDNew Mexico57,330Nevada: 56,980 USDNevada56,980Texas: 56,280 USDTexas56,280North Dakota: 55,630 USDNorth Dakota55,630Florida: 55,210 USDFlorida55,210Colorado: 54,670 USDColorado54,670Iowa: 53,950 USDIowa53,950Tennessee: 53,540 USDTennessee53,540South Carolina: 53,450 USDSouth Carolina53,450Maine: 52,860 USDMaine52,860Kentucky: 52,660 USDKentucky52,660Indiana: 52,570 USDIndiana52,570Montana: 52,160 USDMontana52,160Missouri: 50,920 USDMissouri50,920Kansas: 50,650 USDKansas50,650Alabama: 50,270 USDAlabama50,270Idaho: 48,880 USDIdaho48,880Arkansas: 48,800 USDArkansas48,800Louisiana: 48,630 USDLouisiana48,630North Carolina: 48,560 USDNorth Carolina48,560Oklahoma: 45,970 USDOklahoma45,970Arizona: 45,600 USDArizona45,600West Virginia: 45,390 USDWest Virginia45,390South Dakota: 44,110 USDSouth Dakota44,110Mississippi: 44,060 USDMississippi44,060
USD. Source: BLS, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2019
USD		Change on 2018
1New York82,830-0.2%
2California82,560+3.1%
3Massachusetts82,450-0.2%
4District of Columbia79,390-0.1%
5Connecticut78,070+3.4%
6Alaska75,860+2.4%
7Maryland75,380+6.1%
8Rhode Island72,310+0.4%
9New Jersey71,880+1.7%
10Oregon69,980+3%
11Virginia69,690+3.1%
12Pennsylvania69,630+4.1%
13Washington69,390+6.5%
14Michigan69,050+4.3%
15Ohio64,090+2.7%
16Delaware63,970+1.5%
17Vermont63,480+1.7%
18Hawaii63,360+3.5%
19Illinois63,280+1.8%
20Minnesota63,250-2.6%
21Utah60,660+1.3%
22Nebraska60,390+5%
23New Hampshire59,930+2.9%
24Wyoming58,9400%
25Georgia58,190+3.2%
26Wisconsin57,980+2.1%
27New Mexico57,330+3.5%
28Nevada56,9800%
29Texas56,280-0.4%
30North Dakota55,630-0.4%
31Florida55,210+10.3%
32Colorado54,670+2.4%
33Iowa53,950-1%
34Tennessee53,540+1.8%
35South Carolina53,450+4.3%
36Maine52,860-1.3%
37Kentucky52,660-2.2%
38Indiana52,570+0.4%
39Montana52,160-0.4%
40Missouri50,920+2.1%
41Kansas50,650-0.7%
42Alabama50,270+0.8%
43Idaho48,880-0.2%
44Arkansas48,800+0.5%
45Louisiana48,630-0.2%
46North Carolina48,560+4.4%
47Oklahoma45,970+13.6%
48Arizona45,600+2.6%
49West Virginia45,390+1.1%
50South Dakota44,110+2.2%
51Mississippi44,060+0.5%

Other periods

About this ranking

Average (mean) annual wage of elementary school teachers, except special education (Standard Occupational Classification 25-2021), in US dollars, from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Public and private schools. Estimates refer to May of each year.

Teachers report an annual salary for the school year, so BLS publishes no hourly rate for them. Excludes special education, kindergarten and middle school teachers. Pay is straight-time gross pay: base rate, cost-of-living allowances, commissions, production bonuses and tips. Overtime, shift differentials, nonproduction bonuses and employer-paid benefits are excluded.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the states are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021). https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19st.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021) (US states by elementary school teacher mean annual wage, 2019) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19st.zip

MLA 9

Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021), US states by elementary school teacher mean annual wage, 2019. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 15 May 2026, https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19st.zip. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/elementary-teacher-salary/us-states?period=2019. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021). US states by elementary school teacher mean annual wage, 2019. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19st.zip. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/elementary-teacher-salary/us-states?period=2019.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021), US states by elementary school teacher mean annual wage, 2019 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19st.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/elementary-teacher-salary/us-states?period=2019 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_us_states_by_elementary_2019,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021): US states by elementary school teacher mean annual wage, 2019}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19st.zip},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/elementary-teacher-salary/us-states?period=2019. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021). https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19st.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021): US states by elementary school teacher mean annual wage, 2019
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/15
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19st.zip
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/elementary-teacher-salary/us-states?period=2019
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/elementary-teacher-salary/us-states?period=2019.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021). https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19st.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest elementary school teacher mean annual wage?

New York, with $82,830 in 2019, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which state has the lowest elementary school teacher mean annual wage?

Mississippi, with $44,060 in 2019.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May estimates, state cross-industry file: annual mean wage, elementary school teachers except special education (25-2021). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

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